Childhood Anxiety - what can you do to help your child?

Why I wrote this book
When I wrote this book for my clients and their families I had no idea how quickly I would get through the first 100 copies. When I visit schools I take copies with me. They all disappeared. Then the next 100. Now I'm on the third lot. Everywhere I go people pick up the book and exclaim, "Wow, I wish I'd had this when I was a kid!" Now it sells all over the world on Amazon   Booktopia  and  Collins booksellers

So why is this book so important to people?
Through my work in schools and teaching parents often chat to me and many of them are concerned about the pressures on their children. Modern life is supposed to have given us freedoms and more leisure time, and yet kids seem to be suffering even more than they did when I was young. I believe technology and our obsession with it has contributed to this phenomenon. Kids spend hours a day glued to screens, instead of interacting with real people, chatting, reading facial and body clues, smelling, sensing, touching. This makes them less able to interpret what they see in their environment, causing confusion which results in anxiety. Of course, this is a simplistic explanation. There are many more aspects to life that contribute to anxiety, such as genetics.

When parents start flicking through the book they often remark that it speaks to them and then sheepishly admit that their child has 'probably got that from me.' This is actually great! I wanted my book to start a conversation between parents and children about how anxiety affects them, to demystify it.

The power of this book
Self-knowledge - My standpoint is that children should be empowered by recognising they are prone to anxiety, and accept they will probably always be that kind of person. Stop fighting it, I say!

Managing, not suffering - Learn how to manage it instead. Be realistic about the triggers that set you off and learn how to minimise their effects on your life. I mention lots of different techniques and ideas in the book, as well as the 12 monsters themselves, which represent the unhelpful messages that repeat inside your mind over and over.

Physical effects  - To break free of that, you must first understand the physical aspects of what anxiety actually is, so that even though it feels like you're going to die/pass out/have a heart attack/suffer major embarrassment you know that it is just adrenaline flooding your brain and body, and that if you breathe deep and focus your mind it WILL pass.

What age group is this written for?
I designed it to be read independently by children aged 8yrs+ but it is equally accessible and interesting for teens and even adults. The idea is to take the scariness away and replace it with a humorous take on being an anxious person. Being an anxious person is not the end of the world, or your life, it's just a way of thinking - that you can learn to control.

You can buy your own e-book or paperback book here. I'd love to hear how it's helped you!

Anxious Kids - NEW BOOK for parents and children "12 Annoying Monsters" by Dawn Meredith

Hey! My fabulous book for kids (and grown-ups) is purchased here -  Five Senses Education website and 12 Annoying Monsters on AMAZON    So, what's it all about? Perhaps you are a bit anxious at times, get that pounding heart and shortness of breath. It can feel like it will NEVER END! But guess what? There are 12 annoying monsters chatting inside your head, telling you all the wrong things. Such as: 'change is always bad!' or 'the whole world is a horrible mess!' or 'everything has to be perfect!' These monsters are a real pain. But you can learn how to banish them, through awareness and useful strategies. This book comes highly recommended by counsellors, psychologists and parents.

About me:
I've been working with children and their families for 25 years. I've noticed that so many kids suffer with panic attacks, feelings of misery and helplessness! I've put all  my tips into this fun book. By identifying some of the unhelpful thoughts and casting them as monsters who live outside their heads, children can learn to recognise these unhelpful messages and ignore them. Developing new, more positive messages, more helpful thinking habits and accepting that the symptoms of anxiety can be managed gives an enormous sense of relief and freedom to someone who has suffered with this sometimes paralysing condition for many years.  

The funny thing about this book is that adults will flick through it and exclaim out loud, "Oh, this one talks to me!"   There are ways of thinking which are inherited, as personality, and therefor run in families. In this way, my book can stimulate conversations between parents and their children.

As a writer, I run workshops all over the country for children and adults. I speak to audiences about writing, about what kids like to read and about trends in publishing and literacy. I love hearing what readers think of my books! If you'd like to write a review I will post it here on my site.
Enjoy your day!